


Bookstore Boyfriend

by spideywhiteys



Series: 365 Days of Naruto AUs [58]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ambiguous Relationships, Background FugaMiko, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Gen, Izuna is kind of a jerk but also not, Oblivious Minato, THE LIGHT OF MY LIFE, and for the right reasons, demi izuna, izuna/Minato could potentially be romantic in the future if i ever feel like adding to this, minato is a ray of sunshine, possibly Demi Minato if you want to see it that way
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-27
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-18 23:13:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,564
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29741331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/spideywhiteys/pseuds/spideywhiteys
Summary: Izuna is struck with the curse of having a pretty face. It lands him in a lot of uncomfortable situations.
Relationships: Uchiha Izuna & Namikaze Minato
Series: 365 Days of Naruto AUs [58]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2086938
Kudos: 30





	Bookstore Boyfriend

**Author's Note:**

> Day 58: Fake/Pretend Relationship AU / Minato + Izuna

There is a curse that affects those within the Uchiha family, a curse so terrible and great that many horror stories are passed around by solemn faces and haunted eyes. It takes effect in the middling ages of youth and only grows more prevalent in their day to day lives as they grow. 

The curse of having a pretty face.

Izuna isn’t one of those guys that thinks he’s better because of the face he was blessed with. No, he thinks he’s better than others because he works for it. It has nothing to do with looks, and he doesn’t really give a rat’s ass what he looks like, even if it’s helpful to get his foot in the door to places that would turn him away otherwise. Like modeling agencies — where he’d gotten his first paychecks, his  _ own _ paychecks and not the money his family insisted on giving to him so they could keep a leash around his throat.

So there are some good things that come out of a pretty face, but the opposite is still quite terrible.

The  _ fans _ are terrible.

He can’t go outside without someone on the street following him with their eyes — or just plain following him. He can’t go places without men and women trying their luck, interrupting his day because they think they have a shot getting in his pants. It sounds pretentious but Izuna doesn’t give a shit. Being beautiful means you get more attention than you want or need, if your personality isn’t narcissistic. 

Izuna very much does  _ not  _ want all this attention. He wants to do things at his own pace, wants to succeed in whatever he does and be the best at what he ends up doing. Whether that be taking out the fucking trash or becoming a CEO. Izuna doesn’t do halves. 

Izuna doesn’t like people.

He likes a certain amount — small gatherings and his family. He has a few friends, but none he’s particularly close to. No one he’d call at 3AM to talk about his problems with. Most think he’s a jerk when he tries to talk about how being pretty is a curse. They tell him he’s blessed, he’s lucky, he should be grateful. 

He’s a little bit of those things, but he’s mostly just annoyed. If one more barista slips him their number across his coffee cup in blocky sharpie, he’s going to have an aneurysm. If Izuna is interested, he’ll  _ show _ interest. He does  _ not _ want it otherwise. All everyone looks at is his face. His body. 

It’s a goddamn complex at this point because he can’t trust anyone he meets not to want him for more than just his personality and casual company. Why is everyone so obsessed with sex? Why is everyone so obsessed with symmetrical faces and nice hair? 

It doesn’t make much sense to Izuna, but whatever.

All his face does is cause trouble. Like now, as he’s found himself wanting to flee — and that leaves such a terrible taste in his mouth because Uchiha do not  _ flee _ — from one of his favorite bookstores in the city. All he’d wanted was to get a gift for Madara’s birthday, and now he’s being hounded by a rabid fangirl who’d recognized him from his modeling shoots. 

_ This is the worst. Shit timing. Shit day. _

She’s pushing up her chest, like she thinks having her cleavage topple from her shirt will be appealing to him in the slightest. They’re in public, honestly, and Izuna isn’t interested in bodies so much as he is in knowing people first. Her hair is dyed blonde, not that he cares or thinks that’s bad, but the job is patchy and he knows too many Yamanaka who would scream over the terrible work — he has to hold back a grimace. Her eyeliner is also crooked. Again, it’s not that he cares much for appearance, but the perfectionist in him is more distracted by that than the paltry attempt at seduction.

“So, I was thinking maybe I could give you my number.” She says, a saccharine grin pressed to her glossy lips. It’s like she assumes he’s already in her pocket. Her appearance isn’t terrible, but she definitely thinks she’s prettier than she really is. If she lost the eyeliner maybe she’d go up a few points. It’s really bothering him. “We could get to know each other...maybe get out of here.”

He sighs. “Is my disinterest not obvious enough—”

“Babe!” An unfamiliar voice calls, bright and sunny in a way that Izuna could never hope to copy. It very fittingly belongs to a man with the sun for hair and the sky for eyes, kindness in every pore of his angular, pretty face. There’s a sharpness to his jaw and the shape of his eyes; he’s a rougher  _ pretty _ than Izuna and most Uchiha, but still rather handsome all the same. 

_ Could definitely make it in the modeling world, _ Izuna thinks critically. 

He also has no idea who this guy is.

Blondie doesn’t actually touch Izuna, but he steps close and holds his arm behind Izuna’s body to give the illusion that he’s resting a hand on the small of Izuna’s back. He grins disarmingly at Izuna, as if to say  _ play along _ , and completely ignores the shocked girl who’s looking more caught off guard by the second.

“Sorry, I was really absorbed in the book I was reading. Are you ready to head out?” The man says, then makes a show of noticing Uneven Eyeliner. “Oh, sorry, is this a friend of yours?”

“No.” Izuna says.

“Um.” Uneven Eyeliner gapes rather unattractively. “Are you  _ gay?” _

“He’s whatever he wants to be.” Blondie replies, as sharp and quick as a knife. “Is that a problem?”

Izuna blinks, side-eyeing the man but not confirming or denying the statement. There’s a fifty-fifty chance this could be another fan or a Good Samaritan. Either way, Izuna will take any out at this point. As soon as Uneven Eyeliner is gone, he’s fucking  _ leaving, _ Madara’s gift be damned.

“I—No, I just. I thought. How could—” Uneven Eyeliner stutters, her cheeks flushing with either sudden social anxiety or humiliation. Probably both.

Blondie furrows his brow like she’s a puzzle he’s only vaguely interested in. “Uh,  _ is _ there a problem? What were you even doing with my boyfriend if you aren’t a friend?”

Uneven Eyeliner stutters again, stumbling over words that won’t come. “I wasn’t—I...never mind.” 

She scuttles away like a crab, shoulders hiked up to her ears and tense in a way that says she’s barely holding back from running. Her confidence fled quite quickly after her perfect view of Izuna had been shattered.

How funny.

Blondie takes a step away, freeing up space between them to a more comfortable level. Izuna finds himself surprised by the genuine honesty in his expression. Not that any of that surprise shows on his face. He’s got a reputation after all.

“Are you alright? Did you want to talk to someone about harassment?”

Izuna huffs. “No. It’s not worth it. Happens far too frequently.”

“Huh. That’s…” No further words come, but Izuna gets the man’s drift. 

“Yes.”

Blondie grins again. “Well. I’m Minato. Sorry about that whole thing. I’m sure you would have handled it on your own. You seem like the capable type.”

“And yet you still stepped in?” Izuna quirks a single brow.

Minato shrugs, sheepish. “Well, I thought, you know, just because you could handle it yourself doesn’t mean you have to. And maybe causing a scene in the middle of a store wouldn’t be great.”

Izuna considers this. Then he considers the open, cornflower eyes framed by near-invisible gold lashes. Minato doesn't ask for anything else, doesn’t move like he’s about to crowd Izuna’s space and demand something. Attention. A date. Something to repay his ‘deed’.

“Uchiha Izuna.” He says.

Minato blinks, intelligent eyes scanning Izuna’s face. “Oh! Mikoto’s cousin!”

Now it’s Izuna’s turn to blink. For all the things he could be recognized as, he hadn’t been expecting this. “I….yes?”

“I’m closer with Fugaku, but lately I’ve been seeing more of Mikoto.” Minato leans in a little, still a respectful distance away. “I think her and Fugaku are, you know…”

Izuna’s shock slowly bleeds into amusement. “Yes,” he replies, that same amusement coming out in his voice. “I’m rather positive they’ve already been on a few dates.”

Minato looks shocked.

“You’re rather oblivious, aren’t you?”

The blonde flushes a little, that sheepish expression returning. He rubs a finger across his nose. “Ah, well, I don’t usually pay attention to that stuff.”

“Yet you still noticed my situation.”

A shrug, gold locks brushing over a tan cheekbone. “Well, you looked uncomfortable. Don’t really need to notice romance to see  _ that.” _

Izuna finally,  _ finally _ offers a slight grin. “Have you ever met my brother?”

“...which one?”

“Madara.”

Minato’s gaze flickers to the side, a look of thought on his pretty face. “Maybe once?”

“I’m looking for a birthday gift for him.” Izuna announces. “Be my deterrent.”

“Your romance deterrent? This must really happen to you often.”

“Like you wouldn’t believe.” Izuna replies dryly. 

Minato presses his lips together for a moment, considering. After a second, in which Izuna is almost certain the man will say no, he offers another sunny grin and nods. “Sure, why not? Lead the way, fake-boyfriend.”


End file.
